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Harold S. Luft Mentoring Award 2017

We are delighted to announce that Mary-Margaret (Meg) Chren, MD, has been selected as the 2017 recipient of the Harold S. Luft Award for Mentoring in Health Services and Health Policy Research.

Meg Chren is a Professor in the Department of Dermatology at UCSF where much of her academic work has focused on understanding, measuring, and improving comprehensive health outcomes of patients with chronic diseases. In addition to being internationally recognized for her expertise in dermatology, including dermato-epidemiology, Meg directs the Program for Clinical Research. This Program came into being because Meg envisioned a unit that would apply the public health sciences to research questions in skin disease—a paradigm-shifting concept for dermatology that previously revolved largely around basic science research. She was successful in implementing that vision, and now the renowned program draws highly-trained dermatologists who aspire to careers as physician investigators in clinical and health services research that directly impacts patients and policies. For these individuals and many others, Meg is an inspirational academic leader, stellar mentor, and role model.
In her own words that are echoed by her many mentees, mentoring has always been a very high priority for Meg. They laud her tremendous commitment and skills in guiding trainees and faculty through all stages of their research and career development. (Link to photos)

Excerpts from letters nominating Meg Chren:

The key reason I still work at and commute to UCSF is Meg Chren’s mentorship. Meg has Michelle Obama’s class and strength, Sheryl Sandberg’s drive, and Mother Teresa’s compassion. Seriously.

Meg has managed to nucleate a health services and population health unit within our department—a productive and enthusiastic unit that attracts and retains strong junior faculty; this requires substantial mentoring on her part.

Meg doesn’t shy away from controversial work, and she inspires her mentees to take on important but difficult issues facing the profession.

Meg taught me the role of diplomacy in introducing real change. When I have worked on projects that were considered controversial and unconventional by others in our field, she encouraged me to publish in a powerful and understated way, guided me in navigating pushback, coached me to talk with journalists and leaders in the field, and facilitated my presentations to present the findings.

She clearly takes joy in the success of those around her and often places their needs before her own.

On more than one occasion, when we have run into a problem with author limit, Meg has offered to be taken off the author list.

Meg has been instrumental in developing a community of leaders (recently dubbed “the House of Chren”). When past mentees visit, the warmth and friendship is clear.

Looking around the room at the annual Dermatoepidemiology Society meeting, I realized that she had in some form mentored everyone in the room. In fact, when referring to her in dermatology circles, I usually refer to her just by her first name, since everyone knows who “Meg” is.